


Happiness Found Through Love

by GrimSylphie



Series: Finding Happiness [6]
Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Booker | Sebastien le Livre-centric, Developing Relationship, Forgiveness, Gen, M/M, Reunions, team as a family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:53:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26011435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrimSylphie/pseuds/GrimSylphie
Summary: Nicky and Joe are finally going to see Booker again after more than ten years apart. They want to try and work things out and see if they can form a proper relationship with him or if it will be just the two of them forever.Little do they know they’re in for a shock when they discover what Booker’s been doing these past ten years.
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolo di Genova, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Series: Finding Happiness [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1875796
Comments: 54
Kudos: 298





	1. Reunions

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to part one of the family reunion. Nicky and Joe finally have the chance to see Booker. They work through their feelings about exiling him, about wanting to form a meaningful relationship with him, and wanting him to feel equal. Booker on the other hand just wants to know if he’s dating or single and what that means for André.

It’s ten years after what has been dubbed “the incident” when Nicky and Joe finally start to come around. After one thousand years they found that having time meant thinking through and handling things at a much slower pace. Scenarios where people’s emotions normally burned bright and then fizzled out instead stuck with them, smoldering. 

Nicky and Joe had discussed it privately before the team debated at the Prospect of Whitby and had determined that they could guarantee they would be ready to forgive and accept Booker back in their lives in some form after one hundred years. They knew if they came to terms with what happened sooner they could end it but they had to work through it before one hundred years passed. Any longer would be cruel.

Really, even that was probably cruel but so was being betrayed by someone you loved; being trusting of someone only to discover they didn’t trust you really broke a man down.

All of that was to say, Joe was surprised he no longer felt anger and animosity towards Booker only two and a half years after the exile began. Early one morning he asked Nicky his thoughts but Nicky still felt that ice cold rage reserved for anyone who hurt Joe.

It wasn’t until five years in that Nicky’s rage was finally quelled. When they discussed it, they attributed the change in feelings primarily to Nile. It wasn’t that she guilted them into it, though she did that too. Nile just asked a lot of questions and sparked communication between the team in a way that Booker never had. It made them realize how much of a disservice they did to Booker, both as a young immortal and a lover. 

They never discussed much beyond consent. They didn’t talk about the larger picture of how to integrate him into their relationships. They had just gone on feeling and gut instinct for so long that it seemed natural to do the same when they incorporated Booker. They tried to include him in things, they brought him to some of the homes they made. Homes they never brought Andy to. They each enjoyed their own activities with him. Neither had ever asked what he needed and he never told them.

They asked themselves how they could have missed this? What if they had done this other thing instead? What would happen if they contacted him now? They asked each other those questions too. They tried to solve it as they did all of their other problems, together, but it didn’t work as well with one party missing. 

In the end, after eight, nearly nine years they sought Nile for the solution again. “How is he?” Joe asked as he walked with Nile through the market. When they finished they would head to find postage so that she could mail her customary postcard to Booker.

“He’s okay.” She answered honestly. “He’s working through things.”

Joe’s eyebrows raised at that. Usually Nile wouldn’t say more than two words to them about Booker unless it was to argue in his defense. A well of nerves rose up in him. What were things? Was it a new relationship? Had he been hurt and was healing? Did he neglect to care for himself until he died again?  
“Is he healthy? Safe?” 

Nile paused from where she was picking up a mango to check it for ripeness. “Joe, do you hear yourself? It’s almost like you’re worried about him.” She teased.

“Of course I’m worried Nile. You can’t just drop that he’s ‘working through things’ without saying what thing are?” Joe groused.

“Joe, do you really think I’d be sending postcards if Booker needed help?” Nile offered, her eyebrow raised. “He’s fine Joe. He’s actually doing something about his depression. He’s working through it.”

“Oh.” Joe muttered quietly. “Good. I’m glad.” Joe knew he should be happier. Booker needed that help. He was just a bit jealous he wasn’t there to support him.

Nile gave him a look. She seemed to see through him. She knew he was upset that he wasn’t there for Booker. “You know, you’ve had plenty of time, you could have just ended this and called him instead of sitting on it.” 

“I know.” Joe answered with a frown. “I just... there are days I think I would give up almost everything to see him again. I tell myself I can just call. I can call and hear his voice.” Joe sighed. “That’s not fair to him though. Nicky and I still need to figure out how to better include him in our relationship. We need to learn how to talk to him again.”

Nile smiled. “You know some of that you can’t do without him?” She asked.

“I know.” Joe responded. “We’ll get there.” He promised. “Now let’s get the rest of the supplies.”

That night Joe whispered the whole story to Nicky as they laid in bed together wrapped in each other’s arms as they were every night of their life together. “I miss him.” Nicky replied. “I want to be there to help him.” He sighed as Joe had. “He didn’t think he could talk to us though. I worry that maybe... he won’t want us. He felt alone. We always had each other, he said. He said we never understood. I thought he had us, Yusuf. I just... I wish I could fix it.”

Joe leaned into Nicky and kissed his forehead. “I know my love. I know. Maybe we should reach out? We could start by writing letters?” 

Nicky nodded. “I suppose we can discuss it with Nile.”

When Nicky and Joe woke up the next morning they started breakfast as they usually did. Nile came in first and they gave her a large helping of the quiche they had baked. They even got her orange juice and pulled out her chair for her. “What are you trying to butter me up about?” Nile asked. She was immediately on to them. Then again, they had not been subtle.

“We talked. We would like to resume communications with Booker.” Nicky began.

Nile raised an eyebrow. “He’s finally making progress with his depression and you want to insert yourself in his life again? After you told me just yesterday you didn’t have a plan for how to communicate with him better?” 

Joe and Nicky were shocked. They both blinked. They hadn’t expected Nile to put it like that. Yet, she was right. That’s exactly what they were doing. “You think he needs time?” Joe asked.

“I think he needs to work through to his own issues and you need to work through yours before you try to work through things together.” Nile offered.

“That makes sense. You think we were selfish to not realize that he may not be ready to see us after we exiled him.” Nicky stated.

“Not intentionally, but...” Nile shrugged. “Listen, I’m not a professional and a certainly didn’t sign up to be a therapist for people ten to fifty times my age but, rushing in won’t work. It won’t work for him and it won’t work for you. He’s vulnerable right now. Give it a year or two. Maybe see a therapist yourself, figure out what you want from him and how to communicate it.”

There was a long silence and they all stared at one another. “Okay.” Joe finally answered with resolve.

That resolve made the next year fly by. They looked up website and found forums for how to work as a triad or thruple as they were called according to the terms Nile had given them. They even had a few calls with a therapist who specializes in teaching the families of people with depression how to help them and what to look for. By the time the year passed they felt they knew so much and yet so little. They planned on waiting a bit longer, seeing if they could learn everything they needed by the two year mark when something changed that pushed up their timeline.

————————————————

One year and two months after their talk with Nile, Andy fell off their radar. It wasn’t unusual. They separated often enough. It was just worrying. After all, Andy was mortal now. She didn’t have an expected check-in for another two weeks. They always worried a bit but Andy would ignore any concerned text messages so they didn’t bother to send them. 

Nicky and Joe has holed up with Nile in New Zealand to do some hiking. It had been nearly a week since they had lost touch with Andy when a shout of exasperation from Nile’s room woke Nicky out of his shallow slumber.

He in turn pulled himself from Joe and padded barefoot across the floor and out into the hallway until he reached her door. “Are you all right?” He whispered.

Nile opened the door with more force then was necessary in response and shouted “Fucking Quynh!” before heading to the bathroom. 

Joe, awoken more by the loss of Nicky’s warmth than the noise stuck his head out into the hallway. “I think we should make her some tea, my beloved.” 

The two men walked out to the kitchen and worked together to get the tea going. Nicky out the kettle on while Joe selected a mixture that would soothe them and help them return to slumber. He prepared each batch of loose leaf into a tea strainer and got the cups. By the time Nile came down, her face freshly washed, there were three cups of fresh tea at the table.

“Care to share what all that was about?” Joe asked, waiting until just after Nile had her first sip of tea.

Nile took a deep breath before responding. “Andy found Quynh.. or maybe the other way around. It was unnecessarily explicit.” 

Nicky and Joe were surprised. Quynh had been at the bottom of the ocean for five hundred years and just like that she wasn’t? And Andy didn’t even call to tell them. “So she got her out?” Nicky asked.

Nile bit her lower lip. “No. I mean... Quynh has been out for a while guys. I just... she’s been with Booker.” Nile never really considered having to break this news to Nicky and Joe.

Their eyes widened even more if that was possible. Their faces in a state of shock. “Wait, so Quynh has been with Booker and you never mentioned it? What if she had gone insane down there? What if she hurt him?” Joe shouted.

“Joe, I wouldn’t put him in danger like that. She’s definitely got issues but she’s been keeping Booker safe. I talk to him regularly and I see him through her dreams. He of all people is fine. She adores him.” Nile offered.

“Did Andy know?” Nicky asked quietly. His face now an impassive mask.

“No, I hadn’t thought so. Not until tonight.” Nile admitted.

“Then Andy went to check on Booker and found Quynh. Regardless of Quynh’s mental state I doubt we’ll see them for a while.” Joe admitted. “At least if your dream was as explicit as you said.” He added with a smile.

“I assure you. It was.” Nile admitted.

They sat in silence for a while. All of them taking in the knowledge they now shared. Andromache and Quynh reunited once more. Finally, Nicky finished his tea and stood up. “If Quynh was watching over Booker her absence means he is unprotected. I think, if he is ready, that we should make contact.” 

Joe pushes back his chair a bit too fast excited by the prospect. He chugged the rest of his tea and took both their cups to the sink. “What do you think Nile, is he ready?” Joe asked with the excitement of a kid just told he could get a puppy. 

“No.” Nile admitted, finishing her own tea. “But I’m sure he will be in the morning.” She smiled... “or at least by the evening, given the time difference.”

Nicky embraced Nile in a huge hug and kissed both her cheeks. “Then let us get some rest, we have a big day tomorrow.” 

Joe followed up with an even tighter hug and a forehead kiss. “Thank you, Nile.”

“No problem.” Nile laughed. “You guys put in the work. Now I’ll see you in the morning.” She said leading the way to their respective bedrooms.

That night Joe and Nicky tried to go back to sleep. It was impossible though. Knowing they would see Booker again made them feel like a thousand butterflies were beating against their chest. Their hearts felt light at the prospect of seeing Sebastien but there was a fear they never had with each other. It was the fear of being rejected. They laid face to face considering the day to come.

“I know we needed to send him away. Keeping him around would have just made our relationship, not just with him but as a family more toxic.” Joe whispered to Nicky. “I just worry that we won’t be able to fix this. I spent seven hundred with you as my one constant, my guiding star, before he came and I realized that it was possible to love two stars. That the sky was brilliant not only for a single star that shines brightest but for constellations, for new stars joining the old. If you are the earth beneath my feet he is the fresh breeze on my skin and thought I could live without it, my life would be made worse without its presence.” 

Nicky pulled Joe closer and buried Joe’s face in his neck so he could smell the coconut shampoo and underlying natural scent of his lover’s hair. “I know. I know. I feel the same. I never knew I was missing something until he entered our lives. He looked so sad, so afraid, do you recall? I wanted to hold him then and tell him it will be all right. I only hope it is not too late to do so now.” 

The rest of the night continued like that, Joe and Nicky each sharing their feelings for Booker and hoping it wasn’t too late. It was weird for them as two people who had always been considered a pair or a duo to want to be a trio but they wanted more than anything to make it work. 

At 05:00 they finally got up, no longer able to sleep. It was still dark out. Joe did his morning prayers, as he always did when they weren’t on a mission. Nicky took the time to say some prayers of his own. It was easier that way, both praying together in the ways they were taught as children. Though they had long become convinced from their own discussions on theology that the one they prayed to was the same, told through two different viewpoints of religion. 

Once finished they sat together on the deck of the home they were staying in and watched the sunrise. They were barely able to contain their restlessness, only the knowledge that Nile might hold out on them if they woke her too early kept them from disturbing her.

When it finally became time to start breakfast they worked together to make a feast. Nicky worked up some omelettes while Joe made American style pancakes (Nile’s favorite) from scratch. He even toasted some bread while Nicky cut up fruits for a bowl. They managed to time it perfectly (after a little over ten years of practice) so that they finished cooking just as Nile walked downstairs.

She took them both in. “I guess you two couldn’t sleep.” She commented.

“No, not really.” Joe admitted teeming with nervous energy.

“We were too excited.” Nicky backed him up.

“I couldn’t tell.” Nile deadpanned looking at the clock on the wall. It was already past 08:00 which meant it was past 22:00 in Montpellier. If she wanted to have any chance at peace today (unlikely since she imagined she would be spending it at an airport) she had to call Booker before he went to bed. “Listen, it’s getting pretty late for Book to be up. I’m going to go outside with my plate and my coffee and talk to him and you are not going to eavesdrop.” She said in what the boys had joked was her ‘boss in training’ voice.

“Yes ma’am.” Joe replied with a sarcastic salute at the same time that Nicky responded “Of course.” With a dead serious look on his face.

She piled her plate up, grabbed her coffee, allowed Nicky and Joe to open the door for her. Once outside she sat at the table they placed out there while watching to make sure they closed the door all the way behind her. Once she was certain they had she pulled out her phone and dialed a number she knew all to well. She had memorized Booker’s number because she didn’t want him to receive unsolicited calls from the rest of the team.

“Nile?” Came the voice at the other end. His accent was thicker than when they had met which made sense given he had almost exclusively been speaking French for the past ten years. 

“Hey, Book. Sorry to call you so late, I hope I didn’t disturb you.” Nile answered.

“Non, no. I’m just going over some archival documents for a shipment that’s arriving tomorrow.” She could almost hear him lean back in the chair by the way his voice changed when his posture relaxed from the hunched over state it often ended up in while working. “What do I owe the pleasure.”

“Well, a few things. I saw Andy and Quynh had made up and.. out. So I didn’t want to leave you and André unprotected. Also, Joe and Nicky asked if they could come visit you again. They were also concerned about you being alone. Hell, I think they may just be concerned you’ll forget them. They want to meet up.”

Booker paused and remained silent for a while. Nile almost thought they might have become disconnected. “If they are ready then, I suppose I must be as well.” He finally answered.

“That’s not how it works. I can tell them to fuck off if you aren’t ready.” Nile offered.

“No, I think I am. I’m just nervous. This will change things, you know?” He commented.

“Yeah. It may be a good thing though.” Nile responded trying to encourage him.

“Of course. You are welcome to stay of course but they will need a hotel room and I want to meet them on neutral ground first. I have to tell them about André and set some ground rules.” Booker explained.

“Of course.” Nile responded, pleased at his confidence.

“When will you be arriving?” Booker asked.

Nile considered for a moment. “I’m not sure how soon the flight from Auckland to Paris leaves but I can only assume they will want to be on it. I’ll text you when we book the flights.”

“That works.” Booker responded, and Nile could hear the nervousness in his voice. “Keep me up to date. Also, if you could watch André while I meet with them I would be forever grateful.” 

“Sure thing. Have a good night, Book.” Nile replied with a smile, though he couldn’t see it.

“Have a good day, Nile.” He replied before hanging up.

She finished her breakfast while browsing flight and then went back inside. Nicky and Joe were doing their best to look like they had eaten but they were mostly just moving food around the plates while they waited for the verdict.

“All right boys, I found some flights to get us from Auckland to Marseilles. We leave this afternoon.” Nile offered.

“He wants to see us?!” Joe asked excitement in his voice.

Nile laughed. “He’s willing to hear you out. He seemed more nervous than anything.”

“That’s understandable. We left him in a bad way. I guess that’s why he decided to go home.” Nicky offered, he smile betraying his excitement.

“Oh, he’s not in Marseilles, that’s just the best airport to fly into. From there we have a two hour drive to our final destination.” Nile explained. “Now, please eat your breakfast I don’t want either of you passing out on the plane.”

At Nile’s word both Nicky and Joe began to eat. Nile explained their travel plans in more detail as they listened intently. “So we’re flying out around 14:00. We have a two hour layover in Bangkok and a four hour layover in Frankfurt. Then we land in Marseilles, get our car and have a two out drive to Montpellier. That’s about thirty-five hours. Booker requested we stay in a hotel until he has a chance to talk to you guys. We’ll set up a late lunch with him when we arrive so you don’t have to wait too long.”

Nicky and Joe were all but inhaling their food. For two patient immortals who wanted to exile a man for one hundred years they were sure acting like lovestruck teens. 

Nile was certain at that moment it was going to be the worst two days of her long immortal life. She couldn’t believe that she was chaperoning two nearly millennia old men to see their roughly two hundred fifty year old former lover. She was pleasantly surprised when she was wrong. Nicky and Joe seemed to collect themselves once they left the house. They were pleased to be making progress. During her first trip with them she had been surprised when they attempted to take their swords as Nicky’s carry-on while Joe kept all their essentials in his but they had the credentials for it and so, security let them through every time. 

“Did you know Booker forged these documents, including the shiny seals.” Joe whispered to Nile as they sat at their gate, out of ear shot of the people around them. “He realized how much easier flying would make getting around so he found the paperwork to mark us as curators traveling with priceless relics that cannot be let out of our sight for when we fly commercial.” 

Now that Nile had never heard before. “How did he know such a thing even existed or that it would work?” She asked.

“I don’t know. I’m honestly not one hundred percent sure it’s even a real thing but security seems to accept it.” Joe remarked.

Each time they switched flights Joe and Nicky seemed to become a little more nervous. Soon Joe was fidgeting in his seat as Nicky held his hand in a death grip. She was surprised two men normally so confident in themselves and their love would show such fear over the prospect of seeing a third. Perhaps that’s what scared them though. They knew the love they had for each other would always be but Booker was a wildcard at this point. It gave her hope that perhaps they would be able to work it out with Booker now that they understood a minuscule portion of his fear.

By the time they landed in Marseilles it looked like Joe was ready to vibrate out of his seat with how fast he tapped the heel of his foot, his leg and their seats nearly vibrating with the effort. Nicky would normally put a stop to it but he seemed too busy chewing a hole in his bottom lip to do much about it. 

When they got the car Nile refused to let either of them drive. They were both far too nervous to be allowed on the road. In fact she had refused to give Joe shotgun. His nervous ticks were far too distracting. Nicky on the other hand was allowed to stay.

By the time they pulled up to a hotel in the heart of the old town Nicky and Joe were all but unbearable. She texted Booker to confirm he would meet the boys in the hotel restaurant in an hour and meet Nile at his home a half hour before that so they could catch up quickly and she could watch André for him.

“You boys have an hour to get freshened up before he meets you in the hotel restaurant.” 

There were some muttered complaints in the shared language only they fully understood. It was an annoying mix of the regional dialects they grew up using mixed together and changed to suit their purposes.

Nile shrugged. “Hey, you wanted to see him as soon as possible.” She offered heading up to their rooms. Hers was across the hall from Nicky and Joe’s which was always a safe bet given how healthy their sex life seemed to be. 

“We appreciate it Nile, we really do. I’m sure the hotel will appreciate our attempts at conserving water.” Nicky offered.

Now confident that their complaints were about not having enough time to shower and have a reassurance fuck before meeting Booker she didn’t feel at all bad when she shut the door behind her so she could get ready for her own meeting. One with a very inquisitive child who would want to know everything she had done since they last parted.

Only a few blocks away Booker was having his own little breakdown. He had wanted to see them again. He kept trying to remind himself of that. The small part of his traumatized brain that thought they would take André was wrong. Booker wrote André’s birth certificate himself. They had no right to keep him legal or otherwise. Quynh and Nile wouldn’t allow it. Most importantly, Nicky and Joe weren’t that cruel. 

Booker prepped André’s lunch with a far away look in his eye. It was summer and while he normally would have taken André to the beach on a day like today it was a special day for the almost five year old. Aunty Nile was coming to visit. Nile had easily trumped Quynh as André’s favorite person because she brought gifts and didn’t try to scare him with ghost stories from her childhood meant to make children behave. 

The nice thing about André was he didn’t give Booker much time to doubt himself. While Booker in the past might have panicked and spent three hours picking an outfit that said, ‘I’m sorry I betrayed you, that I didn’t believe you loved me, can we be friends if nothing else?’ André wouldn’t accept losing his father for that long. Instead he asked André what he should wear to see friends he hadn’t seen in a while and he said “This one. So they know you’re still cool but also nice.” While pointing to a lavender button-up shirt he normally wore to work. Booker shrugged and found some gray slack and shoes that would match it. It might be a bit formal for meeting Nicky and Joe but at least it would make a good impression.

Just as Booker plated André’s crepe there was a knock on the door that pulled him from his thoughts. André ran through the living room to the door. “Wait for me. It could be anyone.” Booker said turning the stove off and following his son to the door.

“Hurry up! Hurry up! I bet it’s Aunty Nile!” André shouted back eager to see Nile.

Booker looked through the peephole and upon seeing that it was in fact Nile. He let her in. André jumped up and down. “Aunty Nile! Aunt Nile! You came to see me.”

Nile picked André up and swung him around. “André! Did you get taller?” She asked in English. She knew Booker had been practicing languages with him and he was advancing quickly. 

“Yes!” He replied. A little polyglot in the making. Booker taught him English first because it would be difficult to learn but at least used the same letters, though with a criminal lack of accent marks. He planned Arabic next in honor of Joe. Italian would be last because it would be the easiest to pick up. 

“Aunty Nile you must tell me of your adventures... please.” He added at the end. He was still working on remembering his manners.

“Of course. Let’s get your papa out the door first.” She replied, eyeing up Booker.

Booker stood taller than he had the last time she had seen him. He was clearly nervous but he had worked on this and prepared for this for years. “Thank you for coming, and for watching him.” Booker said, pulling Nile in for a hug.

“No problem, Book. You’ll do fine and we will be fine.” Nile responded, hugging back. When she finally pulled away she clapped him on the shoulder. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.” He replied, grabbing his house key. “I just finished lunch, it’s on the counter. André remember to be good for Aunty Nile.”

“Yes, Papa!” André replied in English.

With that Booker was out the door. It only took a few minutes to reach the hotel. He walked into the lobby and saw no sign of Nicky and Joe. He headed to the restaurant and saw them sitting at a table, next to each other so Booker could sit across and see them both. At this time of the day there were few other patrons and most of those that remained were finishing up. Joe and Nicky had been kind enough to leave Booker a seat that would give him line of sight of the door. It was a sign of trust Booker didn’t take lightly. They were trusting him to watch their six.

Nicky turned around as if he sensed Booker’s presence and smiled at him as Booker walked over. He got up, tapping Joe’s shoulder to have him follow suit and took a few steps forward to pull Booker in for a hug. Booker nearly cried. It felt a bit like home. He hadn’t planned to hug them so close until after they talked things through but when they hugged him, he couldn’t help but hug back. When Nicky let go, Joe pulled Booker in for a hug and kissed his forehead. “We’ve missed you, brother.” He said when he finally pulled back.

“I missed you both as well.” Booker looked at the table. “May we sit? I think this will be best done sitting.”

Nicky pulled out Booker’s chair and they sat down. Booker directly across from Nicky and diagonal of Joe. “May I begin first?” Booker asked. 

Joe nodded. Booker took a deep breath before starting to speak. “I want to apologize for what happened. I wasn’t in the right mental state and rather than asking for help I just took the first offer of a way out without thinking about how it would impact you, impact us. For that I’m sorry. I’m working to get better and learning to reach out but, I need to know what you expect from this.” Booker explained, laying out his boundaries the way he learned in therapy. “I’m still supposed to have nine more centuries so I must admit I was a bit surprised to see you.”

“We wanted to come sooner.” Nicky offered before he could stop himself.

“We asked Nile but she said you needed time to work on yourself before you could consider our relationship.” Joe added.

“I wouldn’t have necessarily said so then but she was right.” Booker admitted.

“We did a lot of research. We wanted to try to understand where things went wrong. We realized we failed to communicate with you. You were suffering but we never knew. We could have asked. We could have made you feel included so you didn’t feel so alone.” Nicky offered earnestly.

“We messed up too. We didn’t realize it until Nile came along. You never asked us questions and we just accepted that. We didn’t try to get you to open up and we just let you flounder as both a new immortal and as someone we wanted to share our lives with.” Joe followed up. 

“You certainly did us wrong but, we were not entirely faultless, and while we did need time apart, perhaps one hundred years was too cruel of a sentence. I think I speak for both of us when I say we’re sorry. We never meant to make you feel alone.” Nicky finished.

Booker frowned. It was taking everything in him not to cry. He didn’t expect them to apologize. He’s the one who messed up. Yet hearing that they were rethinking their choice to isolate him for so long and realized that they should have reached out to him more was something he never expected to hear. He took a deep breath and focused on André. He was Booker’s priority right now. He needed to know what the expectations were going forward and what they wanted out of their relationship now. Did they want to be just brothers or did they want to work to restart their relationship?

The tension was cut by a waiter coming over to ask what they wanted to eat. None of them had a chance to look at the menu but Joe was quick enough to say “If you could bring us one of every hors d’ouvres on the menu, that would be appreciated. Thanks.” 

The server left and once out of earshot Booker spoke up. “I appreciate your apology. It... really... I’m not sure if talking to me back when would have helped. I like to think it would have but I don’t know.” Booker wrung his hands together. “I want to know what you want going forward. Are we just going to be brothers in arms or...?” He trailed off. Not wanting to be too forward. 

“We have discussed this at length.” Joe started. Nicky must have noticed the nervousness in Booker’s posture. 

“We want to do things differently this time.” Nicky offered. “We kind of just lured you into bed last time and it was great but...”

“We never learned what you needed from us. We never asked. We just assumed you would fit into our lives and... we thought you did. You still felt alone though and, that’s not fair. We wanted to you to be an equal partner in this. We’re trying to learn to communicate. We can attend group therapy with you if it will help.” Joe explained. “We want an opportunity to do better with you.” 

A tear did well up in Booker’s eye this time. It seemed too good to be true. It was everything he wanted. He took a deep breath. André. There was still a chance adding André into the equation could change things. He couldn’t get his hopes up. “I would like that.” Booker admitted. “I have something to tell you that may change how you feel.”

Joe ever the romantic opened his mouth to protest. “Nothing could change...” 

Booker cut him off. “Joe, please. If I don’t say this now. I might not have the courage to explain it all.”

The server brought back their food and was giving them a weird look. Probably trying to figure out what their deal was. None of them touched the food.

“When I... Two months after Whitby I got caught. I wasn’t paying enough attention. The doctor that...” he swallowed, his mind conjuring up the pieces she had cut out of Nicky and Joe in his mind. “She survived and found new investors.” Joe and Nicky both tensed but Booker continued before either of them found the words to speak. “I don’t know or remember most of what happened. In the end Quynh found me. She said she had dreamed of my pain for two hundred years and that it was time for it to stop. She got me out and we left. I thought my body was healing but the records we kept from the lab showed that Kozak had used modified versions of my cells to make and implant a uterus because she didn’t want to risk trying to get Andy or Nile. She made eggs from my cells as well and she used the samples she collected from you guys to fertilize them.” Booker took a deep breath. “What I’m trying to say is we have a son. Quynh performed a c-section on me on the kitchen table of my apartment and I didn’t tell you because my trauma brain was afraid you’d try to keep him from me even though I know you better than that. I just... with the exile I was worried you’d only want him and force yourself into a situation you didn’t want because you felt we had to be together for his sake.” Booker admitted, letting go of a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

Joe and Nicky looked stunned. They both stared at Booker as if waiting for a punch line. None came. Finally, Booker fished out his phone to show them a picture. “This is André. He’s almost five.”

It was a photo of André deep in concentration as he drew something with crayons. They could see the similarities to Booker and each other.

Nicky finally regained some speech ability. “Whose? How does?” 

Booker shrugged “Both as far as I can guess without submitting his DNA to a lab somewhere. It’s called double fertilization and it happens in around 1% of human conceptions. Usually not with two men but, yours were both injected at the same tome so there was nothing to stop it from happening.” 

“We’re fathers?” Joe asked with tears in his eyes. Booker was reminded of how much Joe and Nicky liked kids. They had always taken time to cheer up children when they walked through refuge camps in war zones. He had always appreciated that about them.

“Yes.” Booker responded. “I mean, if you want to be. You don’t have to.”

“We do.” They both whispered like it was something holy, neither even looking to the other for confirmation. 

“Well then, yes. Of course. I want to take things slow though.” Booker admitted. “I want you to be sure this is what you want. I don’t want André hurt and while I know you would never do that intentionally, things happen. I would like to introduce you first as my friends and former team, the same way I introduced Nile and Andy. You will have to work to be a part of his life. He will decide when to call you his fathers. If you don’t want to woo me any longer I understand. This is a lot to have kept from you. I denied you those early memories with him out of fear. That being said, you will not allow our personal situation to impact him. Ever.” Booker finished his talk with a thinly veiled threat and Nicky was suddenly reminded of just how deadly Booker was with a knife. One look at Joe showed he recalled the same thing. “If you cannot abide by that I will still allow you to meet him but you will come and go as Nile does, being uncles he knows only from a distance until he is old enough to know the truth.”

Nicky and Joe looked at each other and then Booker. While neither could guarantee the other was thinking the same thing over nine hundred years together have them confidence that they were. Both were a little awestruck by this confident and overprotective Booker. They were overjoyed that this man they loved was willing to share with them the one thing they never thought they could have as immortals. A child of their own. That their Sebastien (because they could not help but think of him as theirs) who had been so crushed by the loss of his mortal children was willing to bring another life into the world alone, a child made of the three of them. That he would do that even after they exiled him showed just how good he was and made them love him all the more.

After a moment Booker cleated his throat. He loved Nicky and Joe but watching them stare at him with tears in their eyes was getting uncomfortable. The sound seemed to snap them out of it.

“Yes. Of course. That makes sense. You’re the only parent he knows. It hurts to know we missed out but it doesn’t make sense to turn his world upside down.” Nicky offered.

“And of course, we still wish to court you. We will just have to change our plans from making you fall for us as we travel the world together to making you fall for us as we learn about your world here.” Joe added.

“We will have to find a place nearby. It seems we’ll be staying for the foreseeable future.” Nicky, stated, practical as always.

Booker laughed. “Well, I may know a place that just came on the market recently. A woman ran out with her lover last minute and left me to sell it. I’m sure we could work out a deal. You’d have to change some decor though. I won’t allow myself to be wooed in a bed Quynh and Andy fucked in.” 

Joe cackled in response. “That’s fair.” He shouted over Nicky’s soft laughter. “We can certainly do that.”

Once the laughter died down they stared awkwardly for a moment before Booker finally grabbed a croquette off the plates that had been sitting waiting for them. It seemed to break things up as they realized how hungry they all were once their nerves settled and they all started to dig in, sharing and passing dishes. 

“Can you tell us about your life here? Are you working?” Nicky asked.

“And André, is he named after Andy? Is he like us?” Joe followed.

“Yes after Andy. He’s also named for Quynh. André Quentin. I can’t say with confidence that he’s like us and I hope to not find out anytime soon. He’s never been sick though and he never seems to have lasting cuts or bruises from his injuries.” Booker answered. “As for me, I work at the museum. I started part time archiving a donation of relics from the Napoleonic Wars but André will be having a longer day this year as it is last year in école maternelle before moving up to élémentaire so I was considering going full time since they keep asking me to. Otherwise I spend my days and weekends with André. I go to yoga during lunch break some days and supervise play dates at the park some afternoons. On weekends I take André out into the world. We go hiking or ride bikes or visit the beach or see other cities. It’s peaceful... Idyllic.” 

“It sounds nice. I think we will very much enjoy getting to know you here.” Nicky smiled.

Booker blushed. “You already know me.”

“That’s true, but we need to know how to make you happy. We want you to never doubt that we will be beside you for as long as you will have us. You will be our equal in love.” Joe offered. It just made Booker blush more.

The food was mostly gone now. The waitress came back with a check and Joe just told her to add it to the room. “We learned, from reading about triads. That our relationships as individuals is just as important as the one we share as a group. If we consider this our first group date, I would very much like to take you out for our first individual date this Friday, if you’ll have me.” Nicky offered. “We don’t want you to ever think of it as us and you. It must be all of us.” 

“He won our spar to obtain the honor of going first.” Joe added.

“Sure. If Nile is willing to stick around that long and is willing to watch André with Joe. Otherwise it may be difficult to get a sitter on short notice and five days is not nearly enough time to get André comfortable with you alone.” Booker explained. 

“Sounds wonderful, Sebastien.” Nicky answered. 

Joe was over the moon as well, he may have lost the opportunity to go out with Booker first but he had the chance to spend time with their son. He would make sure Nile decided to stay, even if he had to bribe her.

“It’s a date then, Nicoló. Now, come, I will take you both to meet him. We’ll get gelato together and you can introduce yourselves.” Booker sent a text off to Nile asking her to bring André and come to the gelato shop down the street from his house.

When Booker stood Joe took his hand. “Is this all right?” He asked. Booker blushed but nodded. Nicky grabbed the other hand and they walked out together. Only separating in the locations where it was inconvenient to walk three across. Each taking turns being the one to let go of Booker as they headed to meet their son.


	2. New Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nicky and Joe meet André for the first time and the team (minus Andy and Quynh) set up a plan for the future.

Booker led Nicky and Joe through the streets of Montpellier’s old town with ease. As they approached what Nicky and Joe both assumed must be their destination based on the colorful sign shaped like a cone and filled with colored circles that were meant to represent gelato. They had seen similar signs were common in their travels across Europe. 

“Papa!” A small voice shouted, a moment before they saw a short blur run into Booker’s legs.

“André! Did you have fun with Aunty Nile?” Booker asked, picking the blur that they now recognized as a young boy, their son. 

Nicky was immediately enamored with the the boy. That wasn’t surprising, Nicky had always had a soft spot for children but seeing a child with features from Booker, Joe, and himself really warmed his heart. Especially given everything Booker had gone through to bring André into the world. 

André looked at Nicky and he was taken aback at seeing his eyes reflected back at him. Those curls were all Joe, though the color was closest to Booker. His caramel colored skin was proof of his Maghreb heritage and was not out of place for a child whose parents had all grown up close to the Mediterranean. 

André looked Nicky up and down before doing the same to Joe. “Bonjour... err... Hello, I’m André, are you papa’s friends?” André spoke in accented English. He had picked up during Andy’s visit and during Nile’s many visits that while his papa’s friends spoke French fluently, English was the one they used most often. Of course, he didn’t know that was mostly because Nile was the baby in their young gang of immortals. For Booker’s first hundred years the team almost exclusively spoke French.

“Indeed! I’m your father’s friend, Yusuf but I got by Joe. This is Nicoló, but we call him Nicky.” Joe replied eagerly. “Your English is wonderful, André but if you prefer we also speak French.”

“Non... No.” André replied confidently. “I am practicing because once I master English papa said he will teach me another language.” 

“Are we ready to order?” Nile asked. She had held back for a while, and honestly neither Nicky nor Joe had noticed her appearance. They were too invested in Booker and the boy in his arms. 

“Of course.” Nicky replied to her before turning back to the boy in Booker’s arms. “André, what do you recommend?”

“Cotton Candy.” André answered immediately. “Or maybe Blueberry!!” He suggested with excitement.

“He likes sweets.” Booker explained. 

In the end Nicky tried blueberry and vanilla while Joe got a stomach turning combination of chocolate, which he wanted and cotton candy at André’s suggestion. Booker got strawberry and Nile got hazelnut. André ended up getting lemon which caused Joe to make a face.

They found a spot to sit outside and eat and André grilled Nicky and Joe about their relationship with Booker. 

“So you travelled with papa?” André asked. It seemed innocent but Booker and Nile knew from experience it was the start of a barrage of questions.

“Yes, for a long time. We split up just before he had you.” Nicky answered.

“Why haven’t you visited before now?” André countered.

“We had a fight with your papa and we wanted to cool off before coming to see him. By that point he was busy raising you and we didn’t want to show up uninvited and interrupt your time with him.” Joe admitted as honestly as he could without revealing too much.

“You had a fight? What about?” André asked. Booker didn’t like the line of questioning but he always encouraged his son’s curiosity and wouldn’t stop it if he could help it.

“Ahh, your papa tried to help people but we got hurt in the process. We were upset that we were hurt and had a fight about it.” Nicky explained.

“I didn’t talk to them before making my decision to help people which is why they got hurt. If I had talked to them we could have avoided the whole thing. We were all in the wrong.” Booker explained to his son.

“Except Aunty Nile?” André answered with a small question of his own.

“That goes without saying.” Nile added, giving André a high five.

“So why did you come now?” André asked.

“We missed your papa. We also wanted to meet you when we heard about you.” Joe answered this time.

André seemed satisfied with that answer but after two bites of his gelato he had another question. “Where do you live? Do you live everywhere like Aunt Nile? Where are you from? How many places have you been? Aunt Nile has gotten me post cards from thirty-four countries.”

Nicky almost wanted to laugh at the rapid fire questions but André was so serious and so earnest in the way he asked that he worried he’d insult the boy. “I’m from Genova, though it’s known as Genoa now, do you know where that is?”

André nodded. “Yes! It’s in Italy. Aunty Nile told me about it. She visited before I was born though so I don’t have a post card. I have one from Florence though.” Nicky couldn’t help but smile at Nile, pleased that she shared her view of his homeland with André. Even if it was hardly recognizable as the city he once grew up in.

“I’m from the Maghreb region. I was born in the desert. Likely, near the border of what is now Morocco and Algeria.” Joe offered. Truth be told, the shifting sands and country boundaries combined with years of trading abroad and fading memories made it difficult to recall just where exactly he was born. He didn’t have it as part of his name like Nicky or with accurate maps depicting its location like Booker and Nile.

André’s eyes widened at that. “That’s super cool. Aunt Nile hasn’t sent me a postcard from there yet. The closest she’s gotten is Ghana and that’s not even that close.” 

“Well maybe we’ll have to take her there so she can send you a postcard.” Joe offered. He didn’t dare suggest taking André anywhere after Booker admitted his fears. “It may have to wait a bit though. We were thinking about settling down here for a while.”

“Really?” André asked excitedly. “That would be so cool. I could show you the parks around here and take you around the museum where papa works.” He turned to Nile. “Are you going to stay too?”

Nile laughed. “For a bit. I want to make sure these guys settle in and get along with your dad okay.” 

“Yay!” André cheered. “You guys should come to my house. I’ll show you all the cool postcards Aunty Nile got me and even show you all the cool books papa has in his library. Is that okay dad?” André asked, turning to Booker.

“Of course.” Booker answered with a smile directed towards Nicky and Joe. 

Once everyone had finished their ice cream they walked back to Booker’s house. It was an unassuming two story in the heart of old town. When they arrived André showed Nicky and Joe around, eager to have not one but two adults interested in what he had to say. 

The rest of the night went much the same. André asked them questions which Joe and Nicky always did their best to answer. They would find meaningful questions to ask about André’s hobbies and his life in Montpellier. Before long the day had passed and Booker put the excitable four year old to bed. On the way André made Nicky, Joe, and Nile promise that they would stay in town so he could show them more. 

After putting André to bed Booker joined them in the living room where they were all curled up on the plush leather chairs and couches that made up the room. Nile and Nicky took opposite sides of the one couch while Joe had splayed himself in one of the armchairs, leaving the other one open for Booker.

Booker sat down with a relaxed sigh. The day might not have been physically taxing but clearing the air of all of the emotional baggage had lightened him while simultaneously draining him. He spent the day happier than he had in a long time. André had all of his parents by his side for the first time, even if he didn’t know it and it went better than Booker could have expected. 

“Sebastien. He’s amazing. You’re doing amazing with him.” Nicky offered quietly over his tea.

“He really is a great kid, Book.” Nile added.

“He knows so much of the world at such a young age. He’s so inquisitive.” Joe added. “You’ve done great Sebastien.”

Booker glowed with praise. He had don his best with André. He tried to nurture his curiosity and bestow a love of learning in him. He didn’t expect just how fascinated André would become with the world and different cultures.

“Thank you. I’ve done my best with him.” Booker finally replied with a blush. “Do you want me to pass you the keys to the house Quynh was living in so you can check it out tomorrow?” Booker asked, changing the subject. “It’s pretty utilitarian so there shouldn’t be much to put in storage beyond the mattress. Quynh already stored her designer clothes off site.

“Wait, Quynh wears designer clothes? Doesn’t she worry about them getting messed up on missions.” Nile asked. Designer items were a luxury and while she had a few pieces for the rare infiltration mission none of the team went high end on the daily. They wore clothes that allowed them to fit in with the people they encountered on the street. 

Booker shrugged. “I haven’t been out with her so I can’t say if she wears them on missions but off mission she likes to make a statement.” 

“How is she? We’re grateful she protected you when we couldn’t.” Nicky chimed in.

“Ahhh, she’s... she functions very well.” Booker started. “Quynh is very good to me and I adore her I think if it weren’t for André I might have come to cling to and depend on her in an unhealthy way. Fortunately, she’s as bad as Andy when it comes to kids.” He paused, trying to think of how best to explain it. “Quynh functions. She functions well but... she is still so full of unquelled rage and sorrow. She hurts so much and yet she keeps it locked away. It’s amazing she can do that honestly. If she didn’t keep it locked away I think she would kill everyone in her path. You once described her as a pit viper in a fight. She is far more intimidating now. She’s like a demon or an avenging goddess. I love Quynh but she scares me in ways Andy could never dream of.” Booker acknowledges.

The team sits in silence. Taking in what Booker said. After a while Nile speaks up once more. “If you guys are taking over Quynh’s old place things must have went well. Are you boys dating again?” She said in a sing song voice more appropriate for catching a middle school couple who just started dating after realizing their partner didn’t have cooties.

“We are.” Nicky answered, he ignored Nile’s tone. “I have my first date with Sebastien on Friday night.”

“Will you be in town that long?” Joe asked Nile eagerly. “Book says if you’re here that the two of us can watch André.”

Nile laughed. “Sure, Joe. It’s not like we’ll have missions for a while. Maybe it makes the most sense to stick together for now. I could go to university or something.”

Nicky nodded emphatically. “Yes. It’s always good to learn new skills. Perhaps it is time to brush up on my medical training. We could both go to school.”

“What are you thinking of going for?” Booker asked.

“I always wanted to study art history.” Nile responded. 

“You would be wonderful at that Nile! You have such a good eye for art and identifying pieces.” Joe clapped. “I think you would do quite well.”

“What about you Joe?” Nile asked. “What will you do?”

Joe took a moment to strath our his beard. “I think. I think there are a number of options. I could try and get a job as a professor or perhaps see if there are any positions in one of the art museums working restoration.”

“The Musée Fabre might be hiring. It doesn’t contain all your usual favorites but it certainly falls within your skillset.” Booker worked at the Musée du Vieux in the old town of Montpellier but the museum community was small and he had heard rumors of one of the restoration experts leaving for an opportunity in Paris.

“I’ll have to look into that. Book, if things go well with Nicky, can I take you out sometime next week?” Joe asked unable to hold back anymore. 

Booker laughed. “You two are insatiable but yes, I should be able to set up for André to go with a friend.” 

“No, I’ll watch him with Nicky. It’s only fair. After that though you boys might be out of freebies.” Nile offered.

“I would like that. He’s very sweet and I want to bond with him more.” Nicky explained softly with a little smile.

“You’ve done a great job with him Sebastien. He seems very kind and it’s clear how much he adores you.” Joe added

Booker blushed. He always felt shy about receiving praise but hearing it from Joe and Nicky, while they called him by a name used only amongst family. “Thank you. He really is a good kid though. He’s rather mature for his age.”

Nile yawned. “All right boys. We can bother Booker later. I think now it’s time to move out and grey some rest.”

“Yes mini-boss!” They mock saluted but got up. Booker stood to walk them out and each of them took the opportunity to hug him. Nicky and Joe each putting a chaste kiss on Booker’s cheek.

“We’ll see you soon Book!” Nile offere before dragging Nicky and Joe out.

Once the door closed Booker sat back down and let out a small sigh, tears welling up in his eyes. It had gone better than he had ever hoped. He had his family back and it seemed like Nicky and Joe wanted to try again. They seemed to understand the fears he had never been able to voice. Hopefully he could meet them half way by learning to tell them what he thought. Still, that was an effort for tomorrow he thought, clearing his tears and standing to head to bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This sort of finishes an arc of the series. The team has all met André now. Nicky and Joe have committed to doing better with Booker. I have some ideas of things I want to write. I’m thinking little vignettes of dates and child raising. Mostly domestic fluff. I’m sure there will be room for angst too though.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry I didn’t fit this all in one chapter. There will be a shorter second part about meeting André and spending the rest of the day with him and Nile.


End file.
